


Aaron And Debbie Outside Mill Cottage

by theprincessed



Series: Village Talk [18]
Category: Emmerdale
Genre: Canon Compliant, Conversations, Family Feels, Gen, M/M, Near Future
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-25
Updated: 2017-01-25
Packaged: 2018-09-19 22:03:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9462053
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theprincessed/pseuds/theprincessed
Summary: After a chance meeting, Aaron bonds with his cousin over family, romance and how extraordinarily odd life can be…





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hiya! Well, I'm on a roll again. I thought of this whilst walking home from the pub last night and knocked it out this afternoon. I have no idea about Debbie really, so...yeah. This happened. Happy NTAs night woo lol!
> 
> Hope you enjoy x

Aaron picks up the keyring from the dresser and smiles. Bought to keep his key to Mill Cottage safe for the time being, it also has his key to the pub back door and to his new car next to it. It's late morning and he's off to the scrapyard to join Adam, ready to do some hard graft because Robert isn't around either to persuade him otherwise. His mum already has her hands full with the pub, so he slips out the back door and decides to make a quick coffee run to Bob.

Armed with two for him and Adam, he fishes his keys out of his pocket and hesitates. The key to his new home is shiny and new, glinting as if it's calling to him to use it. Mill is in no fit state yet, but he decides a quick look won't hurt. He's fairly sure Robert has been having his own sneaky fantasy moments standing outside the cottage.

Aaron is halfway down Main Street when he hears a voice that is familiar but one he hasn't heard for a long while as she calls his name. He stops and turns to see her catching up with him at pace. 

“You're back.” he smiles, noticing she's dressed in her navy overalls like she never left the village and her blonde hair scraped back off her face. “Cain already got you working for him, has he?”

“Oi! We own half each again, thank you,” Debbie retorts, her mouth tilting to show she's just teasing. “I don't know why Chrissie backed out...but I don't really care, to be honest. Sorry,” she adds, watching Aaron's face carefully as he takes a sip from his takeaway coffee cup, tasting that it's rapidly cooling. 

Not keen to give Robert's ex-wife time in his crowded mind, he shrugs and shifts his keys from one hand to the other, something occurring to him that makes him feel a bit giddy. “I just bought a place. You wanna take a look?”

As they walk down to the edge of the street where the tall building and it's protecting gates and scaffolding sits, Aaron answers what he can for Debbie on the whole Andy and Chrissie mess and a few bits of whatever else she missed whilst she was away. He assumes that Cain might've mentioned Gordon to her in the times they had sporadic contact because she doesn't mention it and he isn't going to either. 

They're chatting amiably about Liv and joking about the likelihood of Aaron, a Dingle, being a good guardian to her when Aaron stops to hand the coffees to Debbie so he can pull at the padlock and chain. Since Liv 'broke in' to hide from him after the video debacle, it's been a pretty useless feature in terms of actual security but he still hopes it deters bored schoolkids and curious animals from sneaking into the place.

Once open, he and Debbie pick their way through the debris still scattered around from the fire and step into the porch. They peer through the windows with their hands as shields to their eyes, even though it's so dark and gutted, nothing that interesting to see. Buying a home is a nightmare anyway, but Mill comes with complications, so Aaron parks himself down on the cold floor and pulls his knees up to his chest. Debbie hands him the tray and he takes his cup out.

“You can have that if ya like,” he nods towards the other coffee.

She makes a face but accepts the tepid drink, dropping the tray to the messy ground for now and leaning against the side of the porch. Aaron checks his phone to see a message from Robert, something meaningless about wishing he didn't have to work, and is still begrudgingly fond about it when he looks up to find Debbie staring at him, sort of awed.

“I'm proud of you, y'know.” she says, entirely serious, and Aaron swallows hard. His automatic reaction is to bat her words away self-deprecatingly and he opens his mouth to make a joke to change the mood when she sighs and gazes out to the sizeable space that will eventually be a garden maybe. “Robert Sugden, though.”

Aaron snorts. “You've had Andy! _Twice_.”

“Well if we're going there, Robert too,” she hides her smile by gulping down the coffee before it really is not drinkable. 

“Don't make it weird,” he complains, forcing a laugh to try and see how funny life can be sometimes.

“Hate to break it to ya, Aaron, it's already kinda weird 'cause we're Dingles and weird is what we do, but okay. I was surprised, that's all.”

Coffee finished and counting down the seconds to when Adam calls him to find out where the hell he is, Aaron ambles to his feet and comes to stand by his cousin. His orange hi-vis vest gets in the way of his coat pockets, so he folds his arms across his chest. “I didn't exactly think I'd be marrying him either.”

They glance at each other and smile. Debbie nudges his shoulder with her own. “You're happy?”

He thinks about the GBH charge hanging over him and how it's going to affect his family, his new family of Robert and Liv, if it doesn't go his way. He's scared, probably more scared than ever as he's got so much at stake and to keep, but he's on the journey and he knows who will be by his side for all of it.

“I will be.” he says, biting his lip in determination.

Aaron picks up the tray Debbie dropped and leads her out towards the gates again, locking up behind them. As he faces her, Debbie gestures to the road. Robert is standing near David's with Jimmy, gesticulating boldly. Aaron hates to admit to himself that he finds it quite a turn on when he's doing it, dressed in one of his expensive suits and it's not aimed at him. He's arrogant and bossy and Aaron loves him with every fibre of his being. 

He and Debbie watch Jimmy slope off and Aaron doesn't know if he's that attuned to him or if it's just chance, but his gaze meets with Robert and he strides down towards them with his usual swagger. If he's surprised to see Debbie and even moreso to see her with Aaron he doesn't show it.

“Should my ears be burning?” he smirks, but his eyes are soft on his fiancé. 

To keep himself from falling helplessly into finding him so damn attractive, Aaron frowns quizzically. “Why d'ya think that?”

“I was sending Jimmy on another job, I looked up and there you were. What're you doing here anyway? Shouldn't you up at the scrapyard?” Without waiting for an answer, his eyes slide to Debbie. “Debs. You're back then,”

“I am,” she nods coolly then turns to Aaron, “I was actually gonna ask if you could spare a few hours to help me at the garage? Dad is on a long call-out, Dan is dealing with things at home and God knows where Ross is,”

“Probably with Rebecca,” Robert mutters, unimpressed then louder to explain, “Chrissie's sister. Anyway, you're back five minutes and already trying to poach from my investments?”

He grins so she and Aaron know he's joking and Aaron shakes his head as he pulls his phone from his pocket. “I'll give Adam a ring, see what I can do.” he tells her.

“Hey, it's nearly lunch time,” Robert says, taking a step into Aaron's personal space to briefly stroke a hand down his elbow. “We could grab something in the pub and take it _upstairs_?” Aaron understands immediately and the phone slips from his ear before he can connect the call to Adam. He shrugs, trying to appear a little uninterested by the idea, despite it being their code word for sex, but Robert knows him so well and his smirk returns as he steps backwards again. “See you in five then. I'll get the drinks in.”

“Robert, wait!” Debbie exclaims beside him, intriguing, “I need to talk to you. I know about Chrissie and Andy. I need to find him,”

Robert sighs, “Look, Debbie, I wish I could help but - ”

“No, you don't get it,” she interrupts and Aaron is a little taken aback by how fierce she sounds. “It's about Sarah.”

He knows that Robert isn't exactly close to his niece or nephew Jack because of the difficult relationship he's had with his brother for years until he was forced out of the village, but even he can hear how anxious Debbie is. It's instinct to shuffle next to Robert, sensing whatever it is it's big. He nods at him kindly.

“Let's go to the pub,” he offers to his cousin.

At least there they'll be able to sit down, have some privacy rather than standing outside where any village gossip can hear them and maybe a brew or two. Something tells Aaron they're going to need it.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, lovelies x
> 
> I'm on tumblr at [theprincessed](http://www.theprincessed.tumblr.com). Come chat to me. :)


End file.
